A bit of relief this past Friday with both a potential resolution to the Euro-crisis as well as news that the US economy grew 2.5 per cent in the third quarter, thereby quieting some of the talk of a double-dip recession.

US real GDP growth was fairly broad based, with major contributions from consumer spending (up 2.4 per cent), exports (up 4 per cent) and a big jump in business investment. Even more impressive, the US managed to record decent growth while consumer and business confidence was being battered by political and financial market volatility.

Still, we will need to see both a sustained and higher rate of growth south of the border before that economy, and ours, are securely out of the woods. For now, Friday’s news is a welcome change from the dire stream of data we have unfortunately become accustomed to, and may mean that the outlook for economic growth in BC and Canada has become slightly brighter.